AgriAssurance Program — Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
- Open Date : March 6, 2023
- Closing date : September 30, 2027
Overview
Get up to $50,000 to implement third-party assurance certification projects that will help your company address international market requirements.
At a glance
Funding available
- Obtain certifications or accreditations
- Develop workforce skills
- Access new markets
- Maximum amount : 50,000 $
- Up to 50% of project cost
- Open Date : March 6, 2023
- Closing date : September 30, 2027
Eligible candidates
- Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
- Canada
- For-profit business
- $ 100,000,000 maximum revenue
- 500 employees maximum
- Indigenous Peoples
Next Steps
Activities funded
This grant supports small and medium-sized enterprises in the Canadian agricultural and agri-food sector to adopt assurance systems needed for market access. Eligible projects are focused on obtaining necessary certifications to meet specific export or domestic market requirements.
- Contracting professional services for obtaining certifications required for market access.
- Funding salaries for staff involved in developing documentation or training related to certification processes.
- Covering travel costs associated with obtaining necessary certifications.
- Paying for lab testing expenses required to gain certification or market recognition.
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
The AgriAssurance Program for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) targets for-profit organizations operating in the agriculture, agri-food, and agri-products industry, including the fish and seafood industry, that are directly involved in growing, harvesting, processing, or transforming their products. Eligible applicants must have up to 500 full-time equivalent employees, and their annual revenues should not exceed $100 million. Additionally, they must be legal entities capable of entering into legally binding agreements and aiming to meet market-specific certification requirements for the first time. Indigenous (First Nation, Métis, Inuit) individuals or organizations that are for-profit, as well as partnerships, corporations, co-operatives, or communes, are included as potential eligible applicants.
Who is not eligible
The eligibility criteria and restrictions in the given context do not explicitly exclude any particular types of companies or industries. The focus is on those that meet specific eligibility criteria such as being a for-profit organization and operating within eligible sectors.
Eligible expenses
The grant allows for a range of eligible expenses directly related to the project activities and goals.
- Salaries and benefits for staff executing project work plan activities, including MERCs, EI, CPP/QPP, vacation pay, and benefits.
- Professional or specialized contracted services such as inspection, consultancy, financial auditing, environmental assessments, and interpretation or translation services.
- Travel expenses integral to the project, including per diems for accommodations, meals, incidentals, and transportation (e.g., air, rail, and vehicle transportation).
- Costs for eligible carbon offset credits from verified vendors adhering to internationally agreed standards.
- Other direct project costs like shipping, conference and registration fees, marketing costs related to producing materials/documents, and translation services.
Additional information
Here are additional relevant details for this grant:
- The program ends on March 31, 2028, meaning all project activities should be completed by then.
- Funding is available on a cost-sharing basis, with AAFC covering up to 50% of eligible project costs.
- All project costs are only eligible if incurred after April 1, 2023, and not before the application is deemed complete by AAFC.
- While in-kind contributions are not eligible towards your cost-share, they can still contribute towards project success.
- M-30 legislation may apply to applicants based in Quebec, requiring compliance during the application process.
- Intellectual property resulting from funded projects generally remains with the applicant, though certain rights may be granted to AAFC.
- Travel costs are structured with specific eligible rates and methods for reimbursement, subject to outlined limitations.